Adjustable stop means



Jan. 19, 1965 G. E. SPECHT 3,166,293

ADJUSTABLE S TOP MEANS Filed June 15, 1962 INVENTOR GLENN E. SPEC/4T Fl 6. I Q 3 ATTORNEY United States Patent ADTUSTABLE STfiP MEANS E. Erpecht, (Jharlestown, W. Va, assignor to Pow- W. Va, a corpora- This invention relates generally to a combination angle and pressure reducing valve, and more specifically relates to such a valve which maybe utilized in' fire prevention systems for controlling water pressure to an outlet. The valve is particularly adaptable for use with water supply systems in which minimum pressures are desired at various levels. Valves of the type described are inserted at various levels so that fluid how at the lower levels will not exceed limits which would reducethe required pressures at the upper levels.

An objective of this invention is to provide a reducing valveof the type described with an adjustable stop means which is simple and efficient in operation, and sturdy in construction. 7

hand'wheel 40. The upper portionof the spindle is suitably secured to the cap by a conventional packing gland I and stuff nut, generally indicated by the numeral 42. The bonnet 14 is secured to the body 12 by a bonnet nut 44 and the cap 16 is secured to the upper end of the bonnet by a cap nut 46.

An adjustable stop collar 50 is threadably received about the spindle 23; As best seen in FIGURE 2, the bonnet 14 is counter-bored at 52 and is equipped with a central threaded bore 54 which receives'the spindle 28. Between threaded bore 54 and the counter bore 52, a ledge 56 is defined. As will be'readily understood by those skilled in the art, closure member 26 is moved toward and away from its seat 24 via a rotation of hand Wheel 4i. The degree of pressure drop across the valve depends on the distance between the valve seat and the closure member.

Bonnet 14 is provided with an offset passageway 53 which communicates counter bore 52 with chamber 18. Disposedwithin this passageway is a control rod 60 which is serrated or grooved about its length, as indicated by A further objective of the invention is to provide a valve of the pressure reducing type which includes adjusting structure for preventing maximum flow during normal use, which is fully enclosed within the valve housing and thereby rendered tamper proof.

A further objective of the invention is to provide an adjustable pressure reducing valve that includes mechanism for permitting a selected amount of fluid flow therethrough in normal operation, and further structure including a frangible element which, when broken, permits the valve to be fully opened.

Another important objective of the invention is to provide an adjustable pressure reducing valve in which a lock mechanism is connected to the valve housing by a breakable link, and the release procedure is independent of the operation of the valve .hand wheel.

A still further objective of the invention is to provide a novel valve housing which slidably receives a control rod which is locked in position by a lock assembly extending through the side wall of the housing. i

These and other important objectives and advantages of the numeral 64. Referring back to FIGURE 1, it can be seen that rod 60 is so guided by passageway 58 that 'itis capable of limited slidable movement between the top of flange 36 and the bottom of the adjustable stop collar 59. 1

A cross bore 66, threaded at 67, through the side wall of bonnet 14 threadably receives a locking spindle 68 therethrough which is equipped with a lock handle 70 at its outer end and a lock pad 72 at its inner end. The cross bore 66 extends into the passageway 58 and thus provides a means whereby the lock pad maybe urged against the control rod 60 as handle 70 is rotated. The concave inner face 71 of pad 72 is serrated or grooved to mate with the grooves 64 of rod 60.

The bonnet 14 is provided with a lug extension 74 which is spaced from, and immediately above, the handle 70. The lug 74 and handle 7d are adapted to receive therebetween a conventional breakable link 78 which may be made of 'zinc or the like. Spaced below the lock pad 72,

I but offset from cross bore 66, is a threaded aperture 80,

the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following description of the drawings, illustrating a presently preferred embodiment thereof, and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation view with portions broken m numeral 14). 'T he housing is comprised generally of a body portion 12, a bonnet 14, and a cap '16. The body 12 defines a fluid path or chamber 18 between an inlet 20 and an:

outlet 22. The inlet is attached to a standpipe or the lik and the outlet is led to a desired point of use.

A valve seat 24 within chamber-18 is adapted to be closed and. opened by a conventional disc-like closure member- 26. The closure member includes a conventional packing gland 27; which, when forced against the valve seat, interrupts fluid flow therethrough. The closure member 26 has a threaded spindle receiV ing bOre-ZS about its 31 is secured within the bore via a threaded spindle lock 'nut 32 mating with the interior threads of thebore. The lock 32 secures the flange 31 between its skirt section and bottom of the bore.- Lock nut 32 includes an outwardly extending upper flange 36 for purposeshereihafter'described.

' .Threads 33 are formed in spindle 28-along of its longitudinal length. The spindle extends through bonupper surface. jA turn spindle 28 having a" lower flange from which a boss 82 threadably extends. The boss is counter boredat 84 and receives a spring and ball assembly 96 therein. The spring and ball arrangement against the grooves 64 provides a loose braking action for positioning rod 60.

In order to pre-set the valve for' desired flow, the handlefit) is. rotated counterclockwise until the pad 72 disengages the rod 60. The hand wheel 40 is rotated until the valve is wide open. As the valve is opened, the collar 50 of course moves upwardly therewith. Cap nut 46 is loosened and cap 16 is raised until the cap strikes the hand wheel. An operator then has access to the interior of the housing. Control rod 60 is pushed downwardly and setscrews 88 are loosened and adjustable stop collar 50'is rotated until it strikes the top of control rod 60.

dicia 91 on lands of threads 45. Of course, any type of indicia or scale, suitable for disclosing the relationship between collar 50 and theremaining elements would be satisfactory; The set screws are tightened so as to lock the adjustable stop collar to the spindle at the selected 7 position. The bonnet cap is moved downwardly and the nut 46 is tightened to secure the assembly. Hand wheel 40 is then rotated until the closure member 26 firmly I engages its seat 24. As the shaft 28 and adjustable collar 50 move downwardly, the rod 60 is moved down- Wardly therewith after contact with collar 50. Since the adjustablejstop collar 50 was adjusted upwardly, it will have some downward movement prior to making contact Patented Jan. 19, 19

with the rodt? and the extent of this movement will be determinative of the permitted valve opening. After the valve is seated there is a certain distance between the bottom of rod 60 and the surface 32 in which the valve can freely move under the control of handle 4%. The handle 79 is rotated clockwise until the serrations in pad '72 firmly engage the serrations 64. The breakable link 78 is secured between the handle 70 and the lug 74. A positioning screw 92 is tightened and the valve is now ready for installation with all'adjustrnents fully enclosed and tamper proof.

In normal operation the valve can now be opened until the flange 32 strikes the bottom of rod 60. Only a great amount of torque pressure applied to handle 40 will permit the valve to be opened any farther. However, in the event of an emergency, the frangible element '78 can be broken and pad 72 moved out of engagement with rod 6i). The valve may now be opened to its fullest extent, as flange32, rod fit and collar 50 move upwardly in unison. After the emergency has passed, the valve is reset by merely turning hand wheel 40 clockwise until the closure member 26 is seated. Handle '70 is again rotated clockwise until the pad engages the serrations 64. A new frangible element 78 is applied and the valve is again ready for normal use. v

In a general manner, while there has been disclosed in the above description, what is deemed to be the most I practical and efficient embodiment of the invention, it

should be well understood that the invention is not limited to such an embodiment as there might be changesmade in the arrangement, disposition and form of the parts without departing from the principle of the present invention as comprehended within the scope of the accompanying claims.

I claim:

l. A valve comprising a housing having a fluid path between an inlet and an outlet, a valve seat formed in said path, a closure member complementary with said seat, a spindle attached to said closure member, said housing having a first interior opening threa-dably receiving said spindle and a second interior opening having a central axis parallel with the central axis of said firstopening, means to reciprocate said spindle along its longitudinal axis, a stop collar adjustable along the length of said spindle, a rod having an irregular surface along its length member attached to said spindle, and a hand wheel attached to the other end of said spindle whereby the closure member is movable toward and away from said seat upon a rotation of said handle; that improvement comprising a stop threadably received about said rod for adjustable movement along the length of said spindle, a rod parallel to said spindle slidably received in said housing and movable along a path substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of said spindle, between said seat and said stop, said housing having an aperture therethrough leading to a point intermediate the length of said rod, a rodengaging member threadably received in said aperture, a handle for screwing said'member toward and away from engagement with said rod, and breakable link means between said handle and said housing.

3. In a reducing valve, a housing having a fluid path therethrough, a seat'defined along the length of said path,

. a rotatable and longitudinally movable spindle, a closure member attached 'to said spindle, and a hand wheel attached to the other end of said spindle whereby the closure member is movable toward and away from said seatupon a rotation of said handle; that improvement comprising a collar adjustable along the length of said spindle, a rod parallel to said spindle slidably received in said housing and movable along its longitudinal axis, between said seat and said collar, a lock rod extending through said housing at an angle substantially perpendicular with said 'rod, a handle on the outside of said housing for moving said lock arm into and out of engagement with said rod, an exterior flange on said housing closely adjacent said handle, and breakable link means between said flange and said handle.

4. The valve described in claim 3 wherein a braking assembly supported by said housing is in constant engagement with said rod and is of sufficient strength to hold said rod at its position of rest when said lock arm is out of engagement with said rod and said braking assembly is of sufiicient looseness to permit movement of said rod when engaged by said closure member or said adjustable stop collar.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 133,509 10 19 GreatBritain.

WILLIAM F. ODEA, Primary Examiner. 

1. A VALVE COMPRISING A HOUSING HAVING A FLUID PATH BETWEEN AN INLET AND AN OUTLET, A VALVE SEAT FORMED IN SAID PATH, A CLOSURE MEMBER COMPLEMENTARY WITH SAID SEAT, A SPINDLE ATTACHED TO SAID CLOSURE MEMBER, SAID HOUSING HAVING A FIRST INTERIOR OPENING THREADABLY RECEIVING SAID SPINDLE AND A SECOND INTERIOR OPENING HAVING A CENTRAL AXIS PARALLEL WITH THE CENTRAL AXIS OF SAID FIRST OPENING, MEANS TO RECIPROCATE SAID SPINDLE ALONG ITS LONGITUDINAL AXIS, A STOP COLLAR ADJUSTABLE ALONG THE LENGTH OF SAID SPINDLE, A ROD HAVING AN IRREGULAR SURFACE ALONG ITS LENGTH SLIDABLY RECEIVED IN SAID SECOND OPENING SAID MOVABLE BETWEEN SAID STOP COLLAR AND THE TOP OF SAID CLOSURE MEMBER, A LOCK PAD HAVING AN INNER IRREGULAR SURFACE DISPOSED WITHIN SAID HOUSING, AND MEANS SUPPORTED BY SAID HOUSING MOVING SAID PAD INTO AND OUT OF ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID ROD. 